Senate approves school safety bills

Republican leaders at the Capitol reached a deal on school safety legislation on Tuesday. The deal is a win for Governor Scott Walker, who proposed a package of legislation last week. The bills almost immediately ran into opposition from Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald (R-Juenau).

But Fiztgerald said school shootings need to be addressed. “I think we’re all overwhelmed by what’s going on nationwide, and I think we’re searching for answers,” Fitzgerald said prior to Tuesday’s Senate vote.

The Senate made some minor changes to Walker’s bills, including dropping a requirement to have parents be notified about incidents of bullying within 48 hours. The Senate package does not include an specific reference to providing funding for police officers in schools. The Assembly is expected to take up the Senate bills on Thursday.

None of the bills do anything to address access to guns, despite calls from Democrats to do so. “Much of what was done today was window dressing — talking points for the upcoming election,” said Senator Lena Taylor (D-Milwaukee).